A Christmas Carol
A CCS Parody
by SyaoranSword
Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to CCS. CLAMP and other companies I may not know of own it all. A Christmas Carol was written by Charles Dickens. This is a fanfic, and the story is only meant for the enjoyment of the author and any would-be readers.
Notes: Oh man! It's one month late, but this series is finally finished! It's the first one I've completed too, which I know is rather pathetic. I came back from San Diego in time to get floored with bronchitis, and I got into a nasty little situation with my mom. That's been taken care of, and that's why I couldn't put this away until now. As for "The Testing of Li Peony", expect the next chapter within the next few days.
Chapter 5: The Spirit of Christmas Future and The End of It
"I am Yue. Now, Clow Read, you will see much of what is in store for you." (I know. The Spirit of Christmas Future is supposed to be completely silent and very scary, but stick with me.) With a wave of his hand, the scene in front of the awe-filled sorcerer transformed from a deserted nighttime street into a bustling market under a chilly overcast sky. Two men stood off to the side to start a conversation. Both had gray hair, but one was much younger than the other. Yue motioned for Clow to listen.
"Good morning to you, Amamiya-san."
"Good morning, Yukito-san. Did you hear the news?"
"I did, and it was about time. I was beginning to think it would never happen."
"Ah, but it was worth the wait, wasn't it?"
Clow was puzzled. "Yue, what does all this have to do with me?"
The Spirit merely motioned for him to continue listening. Yukito said, "I wonder what happened to all of that money he had. He couldn't have taken it with him."
"All I know is he didn't leave me any of it!" They shared a laugh before saying goodbye and going their separate ways.
Clow was now more confused than ever. "Yue, who is this person that has left this mortal coil?" (Come to think of it, at this point in the story, Scrooge becomes as dense as Sakura!) The Spirit transported them to a bare room with only a sheet covered bed. An outline of a body was clearly visible on the bed. Clow shivered from head to toe upon seeing it. "So this is the unfortunate soul. Yue, is there anyone feeling emotion for this miserable individual." The scene changed again into a rather dirty warehouse.
A creepy looking man sat in a chair with a pile of loot behind him. "Alright, who's next?"
"Me! Me! I'm next!" shouted a boisterous young woman. "Here is that geezer's old coat that he wore every day."
He inspected the garment before saying, "This is in fairly good condition, Nakuru-chan. I can give you 20 shillings for it."
"Only 20 shillings? You're twisting my arm, Maseo-san! Oh, alright." She grabbed the coins in the man's open palm and stepped aside to let another woman with glasses and carrying a bag over her shoulder step up.
"And what have you got for me this time, Naoko-chan?" She dropped the bag and opened it for him. Maseo was intrigued when he felt the material. "So tell me, what is this?"
"Why, shouldn't it be obvious? They're his bed clothes!"
Maseo's eyes widened. "You don't mean to tell me you took them off the body still lying cold there?!"
She shrugged, "His ghost didn't show up to stop me, and he won't be needing them anymore!" Maseo, Nakuru, and Naoko all laughed sinisterly.
Clow stood shocked at this display of irreverence. "Yue, is there anyone feeling just a tinge of sadness on this day?" The Spirit altered the location again. This time, they were inside the Li household.
Sakura sat in a corner while knitting a sweater. She held it up, sighed sadly, and resumed her work. The girls were cleaning the house, with no conversation between them. Finally Chiharu went up to her mother and asked, "Okaa-san, where did Otou-san go this morning?"
A tear formed in Sakura's eye as she answered, "Your father went out for a walk. He should be home soon. Chiharu-chan, what's wrong?"
Her daughter said, "I miss him."
Sakura pulled Chiharu into a tight hug, and she let her tears flow. "I miss him too." At that moment, Syaoran entered his house looking rather melancholy. "Syaoran?"
He tried to smile as he said, "It's beautiful. It really is. He would have loved to stand on that hill, and take in that view."
The girls all started to cry. "Our poor little brother," Meiling said.
"We'll see him again, won't we Otou-san?" Peony asked.
Syaoran nodded as he comforted the two. "Hai, and when we do, our Takashi will be running and jumping around as much as he wants."
"Yue, tell me it's not true!" pleaded Clow. "Tiny Takashi can't be dead!" A large gust of wind arose forcing the magician to close his eyes. When he opened them, he saw he was no longer with the mourning family. What was once a small living room was now a snow-filled cemetery. "Y- Yue, is this where…" The Spirit pointed to a tombstone secluded from the rest of the graves. Freshly fallen snow hid the engraved name. They slowly approached the site together. "Is this where the man we saw deceased now rests?" Clow knelt next to the grave marker. The Spirit stood next to the stone and pointed once again at it. "Yue, please tell me one thing. Is what you have shown me what may happen or what will happen?" Continuing to point at the stone, Yue remained silent. "Surely a man may be able to alter his future if he learns the consequences of his actions." He placed his hand on the left edge of the headstone. For a moment, Clow questioned how he could feel the cold snow on his hands as he prepared to uncover the name. His hand made one sweeping motion to the right, and he read the exposed text:
'Clow Read'.
He quickly backed away and cried out, "Yue! This can't be my future! I'm not the man I used to be!" The Spirit hovered toward Clow, who closed his eyes and took a handful of Yue's robes in fear. "I will learn from everything I have seen! I will take to heart the lessons of the Spirits of Past, Present, and Future! Give me another chance, onegai!" Clow opened his eyes expecting the cold gaze of the Spirit of Christmas Future to stare back at him. Instead, he was staring at his ceiling. His hands clutched tightly at his blanket, and morning light peeked through the curtains of his window. "I'm back."
He sprang out of bed with an energy he hadn't had since he was a child. Thrusting the curtains aside, he opened his window to be greeted by the bright chilly morning. Down below, a boy happened to be walking by. Clow called out to him. "You there! Excuse me, good lad. Could you tell me what day it is today?"
The boy was quite bewildered as he answered back, "Are you daft, sir? Don't you know? It's Christmas morning!"
"Christmas morning?! This is wonderful! The Spirits have given me another chance! My dear lad, what's your name?"
"It's Jin, sir."
"Jin-kun, do you know if the giant turkey in Wei's butcher shop has been bought yet?" (Kind of strange that a shop would be open on Christmas Day, but if it was alright with Dickens, it's alright with me.)
"You mean the one as big as me? It's still there."
Clow tossed a bag full of money out his window. "Here. Buy it for me, and tell Wei to deliver it anonymously to Syaoran Li!"
Jin caught the bag and looked inside. "Sir, you've given me too much. There's enough here to buy five of those turkeys!"
Clow smiled and calmly said, "I know. Give Wei double what he asks, and you can keep the change." Jin ran like lightning to complete the errand. "Won't Li-kun be surprised to see that on his doorstep!" The sorcerer then smirked. "Now that gives me an idea."
~~~ Syaoran's House ~~~
The unexpected sound of knocking came from the door and startled everyone. Syaoran opened the door to be greeted by a very large and fully cooked turkey. "Wei??"
"Syaoran-kun, thank goodness! I've been carrying this big bird around so long my arms are about to fall off." He waddled in and set the turkey on the table.
"Wei, are you sure you have the right address. You know I can't afford this."
The butcher looked Syaoran straight in the eye. "Someone this morning bought this turkey and wanted it to be delivered to you. Whoever he was, he must be have a kind heart to do such a thing."
"Yes, he must." After Wei left, another round of sharp knocking drew the family's attention. Syaoran opened the door to the last person he expected or wanted to see on Christmas Day. "Cl- Clow-sama!" Wearing his usual dark coat and countenance, Clow Read entered uninvited into the house.
Sakura trembled as she said, "Clow-sama, what a pleasant surprise! Would you like anything to drink?" Tiny Takashi clung to his mother's leg, while the girls all gave him their best glares.
"No," he answered coldly as he turned to his employee. "Li-kun, I have had enough of how things are now." For each step he took forward, Syaoran took a step back. "From now on, things are going to be different, very different." Syaoran was soon backed into a corner. "I want to make you a proposition, Li-kun."
"A proposition?"
"How would you like it if you became my partner?"
Syaoran's eyes widened along with the rest of his family's. "P- partners?!"
"I have long underappreciated you, and I am very sorry for that. I want to make it up to you, so can you forgive me?"
Syaoran shook his former boss's hand. "Hai, Clow-sama. I'll forgive you and be your partner."
"One more thing. Don't call me Clow-sama. Clow-san will do."
"Anything you say, Clow-san." Syaoran beckoned toward the turkey. "Would you like to stay for dinner?"
"I would love to stay, but I already have plans. My nephew has invited me to his house, and I simply can't refuse an offer from him. Ja ne!" In high spirits, Clow Read traveled to Eriol's house. To the shock of his nephew, his nephew's wife, and his nephew's companions, Clow said, "Eriol-kun! It's me, your Uncle Clow. Would you let me in for dinner?"
For a while, all was well. Syaoran's family began to prosper. As for Tiny Takashi, who did not die, Clow Read became a second father to him. With a new lease on life, Clow finally finished the Clow Cards with the two most benign cards in the entire deck: the Flower and the Glow. Then one day, when Clow was having dinner at the Li's, he made an announcement. "I'm giving the entire business to you, Li-kun."
"But why, Clow-san?"
"My time on this world is drawing to a close. I know you'll be fine handling it all by yourself."
Sakura asked, "What will you do now?"
"There's a little place in Japan called Tomoeda. I plan to live out the rest of my days there starting tomorrow." A sobering silence followed Clow's statement. He merely smiled and said, "No matter what happens, we will all meet again." Before any of them could ask what he meant, the sorcerer vanished.
~~~ Tomoeda, Japan ~~~
Clow Read stood before the two beings who have just been brought into existence. They first looked at themselves, then at each other, and finally at their smiling creator. "You are both just as I imagined you would be. Welcome to your lives, Cerberus and Yue."
END
Cast of Characters
Yue – Spirit of Christmas Future
Masaki Amamiya and Yukito Tsukishiro – Passersby
Nakuru Akizuki and Naoko Yanagisawa – Scavengers
Maseo – The collector (Maseo is borrowed from "Everywhere I Am, There You'll Be" [which I will finish someday!])
Jin – The boy Scrooge first sees after waking up (Jin is borrowed from "The Testing of Li Peony")
Wei – The butcher
Hallelujah! It's finally finished, and I really like how I ended it. Now I must work on "Peony" before Urania*Niecy beats me over the head with her Shovel of Insanity. While I was down and out, a flood of ideas for new stories came to me:
1. The Science of Torturing Syaoran – Eriol and Tomoyo don lab coats to find out what exactly makes Syaoran squirm. Contains "tea", skimpy costumes, seduction, and the Blush-O-Meter. Sakura: Eriol-kun, are you sure about this? Eriol: It's all for the good of science, Sakura-san. Sakura: If you say so…
2. The Chair in the Chamber – While ABC and Fox are suing the heck out of each other, the CCS crew riffs both shows while living their worst fears. It's going to take more than a ring of fire and alligators to impress me.
3. The Sword in the Stone – AU/parody. The good king, Clow Read, has died leaving a legendary sword embedded in stone. "Whosoever pulleth out this sword will reign in Tomoeda. Only one with a pure heart and one with a strong spirit shall overcome."
4. Top Gun – AU/parody. Syaoran is a hot shot fighter pilot headed to Tomoeda for Top Gun Academy. He's flying high, but will he crash and burn when he and Sakura become rivals?
What do you think my next project should be? Read and review please!
